Pirates o'the Caribbean: Flower of the Black Pearl
by AlterEgox5
Summary: What if Norrington had a sister? What if, hearing about his troubles, she did everything she could to find him...including board a pirate ship.
1. Chapter 1

Being the sister of an officer of the British Royal Navy had its perks—and its downsides. It meant she got to get out of England, which in a way was good; seeing the world was appealing. But to be trapped on a boat for months on end and being stuck acting like a lady the entire time was horribly aggravating. She would have loved to learn, loved even more to help, but the men all said no and asked her to move along. They wouldn't even accept her willing hands after they lost some poor man at a port to a fever. She wasn't a fool—she knew it was hard work. Instead she was stuck doing nothing in her heavy dress—the heat didn't help either. No wonder so many women simply grew fat. All they did was eat and do nothing all day.

Port Royal. That's where she was headed. To do what she didn't know. _Certainly not to sit and grow fat!_ She'd heard mixed things from the sailors concerning her brother. The last letter she'd received from him told her that as commodore, it was his job seeing to the arrest of pirates marauding about and had plans to be away for quite some time chasing a Jack Sparrow, if she remembered correctly.

But now there were mumbles of him losing his rank, losing his standing, possibly even losing his mind. That he'd become a drunk and a braggart and now hung around the despicable island of Tortuga. She told herself it was all rot—gossip never got anything right. Her brother? A commodore turned sea rogue? Highly unlikely.

"Port ahead!" someone cried.

"Keep her steady lads!" called the captain. "Steer clear of those rocks!"

When they were finally docked, she disembarked and was met by the governor himself.

"Ah," he said in relief with open arms. "You're here at last. I'm glad to meet you Miss Norrington."

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"Go back?" Lily said in astonishment. "But I've only just got here! To stay for a week and then go back—you cannot be serious!"

"I assure you I am," said Governor Swann, "but please understand I give you my deepest apologies—"

"Where is my brother?" she demanded. "At the very least if I am to spend such a short amount of time here, do me the honor of informing me of my brother's location."

Governor Swann looked uncomfortable and began fussing with his lace cuffs. "We are in rather trying times here Miss Norrington, and the fact of the matter is we do not know where your brother is. The last we heard is he lost his ship in a hurricane. We are sure he survived as many claim to have seen him, but…"

Lily recoiled, horrified. "Do not tell me all the stories are true…?"

"We cannot be sure that anything is true," he said, trying to sound hopeful.

Lily put a hand to her chest. _My brother_, she thought. _Lost his reputation?_ She knew how much things like that meant to him. She straightened up and composed herself.

"Governor Swann, if you don't mind, I shall retire to my room now."

"Yes, of course."

She swept up the stairs, heading for the room that had been readied for her, but already she had plans forming in her head.

----------------------

Lily snuck out of the house the very next night. All throughout the day she had inquired as to her brother's possible whereabouts, and because the answer had so often been, "Maybe Tortuga?" she had wandered everywhere possible asking if there was a boat to make for Tortuga soon. There was, but only one, and they refused to take her on board. Being both a female and close relative to a British Royal officer was her downfall. She was untrustworthy and unlucky, two strikes against her.

So she had found some old servant's clothes that fit her loosely, a hat to tuck up her hair in, and set out in the middle of the night to find some way to hide on the ship. She wasn't sure of what they would do if they caught her. Surely they wouldn't throw her off the ship. She put it out of her mind. It was more important to find her brother. She was certainly not returning to England after a week!

The boat, however, had men on it and two more close to the dock so there was no way she was going to sneak on. She surmised the large boxes at the edge of the dock would be loaded on the next morning, and after quietly dumping its contents into the ocean, she climbed in and waited for daylight.

Lily awoke the next morning cramped and once more feeling the roll of the ocean waves as the boat rocked to and fro. A small groan escaping her lips, she sat up and hoped nothing was stacked on top of the box she was in. She began to push up and found it opening easily when she remembered they would not take to her presence very kindly. The sudden sound of footsteps pounding down stairs to her location surprised her and she let the lid snap shut by accident. She held her hands in tight fists, hoping they hadn't heard.

"Never been to Maracaibo before," one man said. Lily let out a quiet sigh. They hadn't heard. Her luck was holding up. _Wait…_ She gasped aloud in realization. The captain hadn't said anything about a stop at Maracaibo. These crates—she was on the wrong ship! Her good luck had disappeared.

"Ey," muttered one of the crewmembers. "Did you hear that?"

Lily slapped a hand to her mouth.

"Sounded like a person."

Her luck was going from bad to worse and she prayed they would ignore it.

With a loud creak, the top of the box flew open and the found herself staring up into the faces of two strange men.

"Well I'll be," muttered one of them. Then he smiled. "'Ello deary."

They hauled her to the deck where the captain pondered over what to do with her. However, before he could give an answer, he paused, hand still on his chin as he spotted something in the distance. He spun around.

"Put 'er in the cabin, we'll deal with 'er later! Step up lads, we got some unfriendly company wot's comin' our way!"

As she was dragged off to the captain's cabin, Lily caught sight of what he was talking about. A ship with black sails.

"And you'll stay in there if you know wot's good for ya," the sailor told her, shoving her into the room and slamming the door. Lily dashed over to a window and stared through the glass at the oncoming ship. Was it just her or what is already closer? A single word popped into her head.

_Pirates._

She'd heard stories about them, just as she'd heard stories of her brother. _I guess sailors don't gossip—they exchange stories._ What would they do if the pirates caught them? What would the pirates do to her? She squeezed her eyes shut. _Best not to think about it._ But what were the men on this ship going to do to her? Would it be any different? She cursed herself for being the biggest fool on the face of the earth. What did Norrington need from her anyway? Rescuing? _Honestly…_

A dull whistle and a loud explosion in the water just outside the window made her scream and jump back.

"They're aimin' to disable us!" someone outside yelled.

"Pull her to port! Get some more of that wind!"

Another explosion rocked the ship and Lily fell into a chair. It was then she noticed she was sitting at a table with numerous nautical instruments on it. Frantically she began scrabbling amongst them, searching for anything she could possibly use as a weapon in the near future—whether they escaped or not.

"It's no good! They're still gaining captain!"

"You'd do well to arm yourselves, men!" the captain bellowed.

Lily's hands closed on a sharp compass. No escape. She'd be fighting pirates. She felt a little better knowing she'd had all that time with Norrington when they were children, dueling out in the yards. A little better—but not much. Dueling with her brother in the yards in England was one thing. Fighting pirates with something that measured distance on maps out in the middle of an ocean in order to stay alive was completely different.

"They're coming captain!"

"Steady boys! Make ready!"

Her last, fleeting hope was that James was already on that ship.

It wasn't much longer before the creaking of another ship could be heard alongside theirs and the men began shouting threats and insults at one another. The first shot of a gun seemed to set things off, several gunshots following along with an increase of screams and shouts. Lily ventured a peek out the window and could barely make out men from the pirate ship swinging onto the merchant vessel. She turned and frantically looked about the room. They'd be coming into the captain's cabin, no doubt, and there was nowhere to hide. _I'll have to venture outside and risk getting caught—otherwise I'll be caught for sure!_

"Round them up, round them up!" a casual voice directed. "Come, come, now lads, what did I take you aboard my ship for?"

Definitely not the merchant captain. Was it the pirate leader? Almost on all fours, Lily crept to the door and opened it a crack to look out. A few more gunshots rang out, but the battle had ended fairly quickly, save a couple of stragglers. It looked like the crew was being rounded up by the mast—or were they being tied up? It was difficult to say.

"Any more of you?" asked the strange man again, but continued without an answer. "Not a very large crew. Well I suppose you'll be hauling enough. Where you headed? Panama? Maracaibo?"

A boot thudded down as the man stepped into view. He wore a long, dark coat that might have been discolored originally or simply gotten that way from years of use and lack of cleaning. His boots were high and of worn leather, a cutlass at his waist, pistol in his hand, and a worn brown hat sitting atop his head, under which appeared to be a red bandana wrapped around long, dark disheveled hair.

More random shots were fired, followed by a few shouts.

"Would someone _please_ take care of that? I might have loaded a pack of dogs on board and have less trouble than with you lot."

_Now or never_, Lily thought, planning on bursting through the door and dashing off somewhere safer. Or so she convinced herself.

"You there!" the pirate threw out an arm and pointed at the captain. "Mind tellin' me what's so interesting about your quarters, ey?"

Lily clicked the door shut just as the pirate turned around. Panicking, she stood and began backing away. Interesting about the captain's cabin? Did he have gold in the room? She froze, her jaw dropping. _Her_. The captain had _her_ in the room. And there was nowhere to hide except—the window!

She rushed to the back and swung the panes open, craning her head to look up. If she could just reach up to that planking…

Her feet disappeared from the window just as the door squeaked open. In moments she was peeking over the deck through the wheel. There seemed to be only five pirates, though she was sure there were more below deck. To the right was another ship, much larger than the one she was on now, with dark, ashy wood and black sails with dirty patches on them. Lily squeezed her eyes shit. Lord what a mess she was in.

"Don't know what you've got in there you think is worth anything mate," said the leader, strolling back out. "If this is what you were worried about," he jiggled a small pouch of coins in the captain's face, "then you've got problems. Wouldn't ever be much good at cards I expect. Mr. Gibbs!"

"Aye captain!"

"Anything down there worth anything at all?"

"Eh, looks mostly like tradin' supplies, but I'm sure we'll find use outta the lot of it," a man called up from below deck.

"Good! Means you weren't a waste after all," the leader said into the captain's face. "Load it up and we'll be off to Tortuga!"

There was a brief hurrah from the men and they began hauling boxes out of the hold and leading them onto the pirate ship. But Lily's mind was at work again. Tortuga straightaway? If they left the crew of this ship alive, they would most definitely return to Port Royal. If not, she'd be stuck on a boat all on her own with no idea of how to navigate it and no supplies. The men became less of an issue—she didn't trust either group.

_Bold Lily_, she thought as she grabbed onto a free swinging rope and waited for the opportune moment. _Very bold—and probably very stupid as well._ The pirate's ship was much bigger, so she was sure there would be plenty of places to hide. All she had to do was hold out until they reached Tortuga, which was hopefully only a few days away. Hopefully.

The second everyone's backs had turned, she ran forward, pushed off, and swung onto the upper deck at the aft of the ship. Immediately she dropped down low, releasing the rope to the breeze and lay there, crouched like a cat, her eyes trained on the working crewmembers below.

_Where to hide, where to hide?_ She couldn't try going below deck now—that's where everyone was going. Behind her she spotted a bunch of ropes with a heavy blanket thrown over them. _Good enough for now._ Moving slowly, she backed up to the pile and cautiously lifted the blanket to crawl under them. The things she did to escape conventions sometimes. The last most drastic she had done was to run away into the woods for three days to protest an engagement to an utterly frightful man over twice her age. It was James who had found her and convinced her to return home, and then persuade her mother and father to cancel the marriage, going so far as to announce he would cut himself off from the family if they did not. It was one of the many reasons she wanted to find her brother so badly. She had always needed him, so this time perhaps he needed her.

"All right, that's it, cast off!" yelled the pirate captain. They disentangled themselves from the merchant ship and began putting distance between them, heading in the same direction they had come from. Lily decided she would wait until nightfall to search for a better hiding place—preferably to somewhere nearer to the food and water. A long stroll there and back meant for more chances to get caught and end up like the merchant sailors, dead, which they probably were. Or thrown off the ship…or possibly something else she had been doing her best not to think of.

She closed her eyes, hot and sweating beneath the blanket, and laid her head on one of the large knots in the rope, silently wishing Tortuga was just around a bend in the ocean.

Dusk couldn't seem to come any more slowly. She was absolutely parched and hungry as well. She hadn't had anything to eat or drink all day. At least in the woods there had been a stream and several bushes full of berries. _A little longer, a little longer,_ she kept repeating to herself, knowing the sun was setting from the orange light sneaking in from under the cracks where the blanket met the wood. _A little longer, just a little while longer…_ The orange gave way to pink, and was beginning to transform into blue when the sound of heavy footsteps caught her attention.

"Oy there, Mr. Gibbs!" she heard the captain call out. "What're you doing up there?"

The footsteps stopped just at the edge of Lily's hiding place.

"Some of the ropes for the mainsail're lookin' a mite rat-eaten. Was thinkin' I'd replace 'em. After all, gotta have the Pearl in the best shape she can be, eh Jack?"

_Oh no, oh no…_

"True enough, but you've been working hard all day—why not go down and enjoy some company with the boys, ey?"

_Yes, please do Mr. Gibbs._

There was a long pause that seemed to be one of the most drawn out moments in Lily's life. Finally Gibbs spoke again.

"Right," he drawled in a way that struck Lily as odd and made her feel uneasy. "Tomorrow morn then."

The boots thudded back down and Lily breathed a quiet sigh of relief. No doubt about it; tomorrow she would have to be somewhere else. She would move that night.

When everything was silent save for the lapping of waves against the ship's hull, and no more light shown under the blanket, Lily began to creep out, grateful for the cool night air against her sweaty skin. All around her, everything was black. If it weren't for the half moon in the sky, she'd never know where sky stopped and sea began. Even now she wasn't sure. Though she was admittedly thankful for the long lantern hanging from a tied off rope, the fact that she would have to go past a crewmember sleeping near it in a hammock made her nervous. She'd spent enough time on English vessels, the longest on her last voyage, to have some idea of where the men might be sleeping. She could only guess how many compartments it had. But if she was going to get down to the cargo, she could have to slip past the man in the hammock and probably the entire sleeping crew.

_What a bizarre, horrifying gauntlet I've got to run._

After taking a few deep breaths, she treaded softly down to the deck and headed for the dark gaping square that was to lead her below. Asleep though he was, Lily kept to the shadows, out of the lantern light, and inched her way along the side, aware of the open blackness of cold water behind her. She thought she heard whispering, but couldn't be sure. When she paused to listen more closely, she heard nothing and dismissed it as an overexcited imagination.

She winced sharply as her foot came into contact with something and caused it to clatter over the wood. The man in the hammock snorted loudly and sat up, snatching out a pistol and firing, missing Lily by mere inches.

"Stop!" someone yelled. She didn't know if the voice meant her or the other man, but it was obvious enough she wasn't going to listen and doubted if the deckhand would either. Instead, she dashed off, aiming to dart behind a mess of boxes and barrels. As she turned the corner, another shot echoed out over the sea and ricocheted off the crate at her left, catching her in the back of her arm.

"Stop, stop, you stupid mongrel!"

Lily noticed it as the voice of the pirate captain—Jack. Her breath came in quick gasps as she stood still behind the empty containers, feeling the shock of warm blood dribble down her arm and steadily pat against the wood floor.

"Mr. Gibbs, you are no longer in charge of hiring while intoxicated—but I applaud you for trying," Jack said.

"Right. Sorry about that. Just seemed like a good idea at the time."

"No harm done. Besides, I thought so too at the time. You there, you can come out!"

Her grip tightened around the silver compass she'd stolen from the merchant ship. She hadn't let go since. But now it was evident she might actually have to use it. It looked as thought she might not see James after all.

"How'd you know we'd gotten someone aboard?" Gibbs asked.

"It's the Black Pearl; it's _my _ship. I know every nook and cranny—those ropes haven't been covered in ages. Besides, saw what looked like a bit of a rump under there."

"Ahh," Gibbs muttered thoughtfully. "But I gotta tell ya Jack, I coulda swore this fella was wearin' a dress. Suppose he's daft?"

The pause seemed to indicate Jack was pondering this idea.

"Very well could be, jumping aboard a pirate ship and all."

"Oh it wouldn't bode well for us if'n we'd got ourselves a loon aboard."

"Suppose you'd rather have a woman then, ey?"

"After Elizabeth, aye, I believe so."

Lily shivered. Elizabeth? Who was Elizabeth? Some other poor woman they'd captured? She tried not to think about it.

"I've been more than patient," Jack called. "If you've come to join my crew, I accept, but right now I must say lad, you're not makin' yourself very trustworthy."

Clenching and unclenching her right fist around the compass, Lily though on what to do. Options were slim, if they could even be deemed options. Give up. Fight. Die giving up, die fighting. Horrible, horrible options.

The dull click of the gun was right beside her ear, a cold circle of metal pressing against her temple.

"Evenin' love. Now if you'd do me the pleasure…"

Silently Lily swore at herself. While she'd been thinking, their captain, this Jack fellow, had crept up around to her left side and put his gun to her head. With the barrel pressing gently at her, she obliged and went around the crates to face the other two men on the deck. Mr. Gibbs and the other utterly dumbfounded man in the hammock. Gibbs's face went from looking proud of Jack to astonished at what he saw before him.

"Mother's love. It _is_ a woman!"

A part of Lily wished she had taken some of the male servant's clothing instead of the maid's, but it wouldn't have mattered much. She looked in no way like a male even with a hat hiding all her hair, and even so, the moment the hat came off, it would all come tumbling down as she hadn't used enough pins to hold it up. At the very least, she was keeping her right hand hidden behind the folds of her dress.

"Wot's she doin' on 'ere?" asked the man from the hammock.

"Nothing for you to worry about mate," Jack said, putting his pistol away. "Go on below deck and get some sleep. I believe Mr. Gibbs and I can handle this."

Still looking baffled, half asleep, and slightly drunk, the man did as he was told and disappeared from sight.

"Jack," said Gibbs," if you knew there was someone stowin' away under with them ropes, why'd ye wait until tonight to catch 'em? Why not just snatch 'em up right there?"

Jack walked around to the other side of Lily. "My dear Mr. Gibbs. The problem with stowaways is that they can't be trusted. Why else would someone sneak onto a ship—much less a pirate ship—than if they had something to hide or some crazy reason to do so."

He had taken a few more steps forward. His back was to her now. She could do it—stab him in the back. Rid them of their captain. Gibbs had no discernable weapons; perhaps she could catch him off guard as well. Steal a boat—or maybe make it look like they'd had a quarrel and killed each other; throw one of them or both overboard. Time was draining away while Jack talked and she thought. Now or never again!

Swiftly raising up her arm she swung down at Jack, only time enough for Gibbs's eyes to widen in surprise—and for Jack to spin around and grab her wrist.

"Like I said," he told her quietly, grinning in her face. "They can't be trusted." He gave her wrist a nasty squeeze, forcing her to drop the silvery compass. "And that, Mr. Gibbs, is why I didn't want you to go rummaging about in the ropes earlier today. Wouldn't want you to end up with that sticking out of your neck now would we?"

He released her and her hand went to her arm, which was throbbing painfully and still dripping blood.

"Even women have the sense to fight back when they're cornered. A bit like dogs in a way."

"Dogs!" Lily exclaimed, unable to stop herself.

"Ah she does speak!" Jack cried, a triumphant smile on his face. "Let me guess. Traveling hussy? Runaway maid?"

"I'd say more like a witch," Gibbs said, looking at Lily in distaste.

"I've got it!" Jack quipped, seeming to have the ultimate epiphany. "You're runnin' from your husband who is apparently the most low-down scoundrel there is and so have decided to turn pirate and just happened to come upon my ship, either that or you've heard of me and just got lucky."

Lily stared at him. He couldn't honestly be a pirate, could he?

"I'm looking for my brother," she said, keeping her voice as firm as possible.

"Ooh," Jack turned to Gibbs. "Her brother." He turned back. "Well now missy, I'm inclined to believe you are looking in all the wrong places."

Lily refused to be fazed. "I meant to take a ship to Tortuga from Port Royal, but ended up on one bound for Maracaibo instead."

"Maracaibo!" Again he turned to Gibbs. "I knew that was where they were going." He returned to Lily.

"When I hard you say you were bound for Tortuga I took it upon myself to come over to this vessel and ride it out."

Gibbs leaned in to Jack and muttered, "She's daft."

Lily turned a sharp eye on him. "I am not daft. My brother means the world to me and I shall find him, pirates or not."

But as Jack and Gibbs stared at her, she hoped she hadn't gotten too bold.

"Well missy," Jack suddenly burst out, "this is all very fine and well and fascinating, but seeing as your dripping blood all over my ship, why don't we patch you up and you can give us all the details later, ey? Mr. Gibbs, go on below and see to it those shots haven't disturbed the men, though seeing as we've hired a crew with the collective intelligence of a jellyfish, I highly doubt there'll be anything to worry about. Miss, follow me."

Having no other choice, unless she decided to throw herself into the sea, she followed him to his cabin. He seemed a very strange man. Charming, in an odd way. But she wasn't about to trust him yet.

He led her into his quarters, a place that gave the impression of being small and cramped due to the amount of books, maps, and various objects on shelves or hanging from the walls. Nothing matched in any shape or form; it was a ragtag hodgepodge of probably everything he'd ever taken and was planning on being used, sold, bartered with or gambled way.

"Have a seat little missy," he said, gesturing to his mess of a bed without even looking at her. Instead he began searching amidst the objects on an old desk, a spotted, cracked mirror hanging above it.

Lily, still clutching her arm, set her hand on her lap so as to avoid getting blood all over the floor and the bed, though she had a feeling both had seen their fair share as it was. Still, she felt that perhaps if she took some stock in the way he seemed to feel about his ship, he might be a little more civil to her, or at least remain as he was now in temperament.

"Did you kill those men?" she asked, unable to stop herself. She'd been wondering about it ever since she left the ship. It hadn't seemed like they'd been killed, but she couldn't be certain.

Finally Jack snatched up a cloth and came over to her. He stood over her for a few minutes, ragged cloth dangling in his hand, until he gave her a short yet definitive, "No."

He crouched down beside her and began wiping away the blood at the wound.

"May I ask why?" she asked, staring straight ahead and hoping she wasn't being too forward.

"What? Would you have preferred I kill them?" Jack paused to look at her.

"No," she said quickly. "No. I just—"

"Let me guess—pirates. They're not supposed to leave survivors and press men into service and all that rubbish, ey?" He returned to his work at her wound. "I can't say that none of that's true. Men get killed and pressed into service all the time, just like your little storybooks tell you. However, how I see it, I can raid a ship and leave it just as I found it—minus the goods of course. See, if I leave all the men alive, they have the opportunity to try again in a ship I leave afloat. If not, then a whole new crew has to be put together same as a ship. Takes too much time and makes too many people angry, see? But, if all comes back in good shape, they come back out, at most with a few more guns. Savvy?"

Lily nodded slowly. It did make sense. The crew was more valuable alive…but, what about her?

"Are you…going to kill me?"

Jack glanced up at her, a mildly amused look dancing in his eyes. "If I was gonna kill you love, why would I be spendin' the time to patch you up?"

True. So she would be worth more alive…unless his plans had nothing to do with money…

"Oh don't look so bloody horrified," Jack said, catching the expression on her face. "It's not fun that way."

Lily didn't know if she should be disgusted or relieved.

"For all the bad turns you've seemed to have gone about, you've managed a grazing from that bullet, which means I don't have to go diggin' about for it."

He began to wrap up the blood-stained cloth around her arm.

"What do you plan to do with me?"

Jack tied off the ends and stood, Lily staring up at him. He appeared to ponder things a bit before settling his hands on his hips and bending forward a little.

"I can think of a few things, but you've already made it clear you're not interested in one of them. In which case, you'll be helping about on my ship, seeing as you're going to be drinking my water, eating my food, and sleeping…well, somewhere…haven't quite worked that out yet."

"Then I'm to be pressed into service then?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Again Jack appeared to ponder things.

"Yes. I suppose you are, at least until we reach Tortuga, then you'll be free to go anywhere your fanciful little heart might take you," he said with a grand hand gesture. Then he paused in the act. "You said you were looking for your brother, did you not?"

"Yes."

"Anyone I might know?"

Lily tried her hardest not to blush in awkward embarrassment—and fear, lowering her eyes. "No. Highly unlikely."

Jack straightened. "Ah. Then might I have the pleasure of your name before retiring for what's left of the night?"

Thinking quickly, she decided she couldn't give him her last name—all the naval officers went by their last names, and as a pirate-chasing commodore, James's would certainly be recognized. Well, she was dressed as a maid; maids went by their first names in any household…

"Miss Lily."

She glanced up at Jack and could immediately tell he knew she was hiding something from him. The way he leaned back slightly, the merest indication of a frown, the slant of his dark eyes; she waited for him to press the matter.

"All right then Miss Lily," he said at length. "You'll be sleeping here tonight. Tomorrow you being your new education."

He made for the door and opened it, but just before he had closed it after himself, Lily turned and asked one last question.

"What about you? I mean, what name should I call you by?"

He turned and poked his head back in.

"You'll be callin' me Captain Jack Sparrow."


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Lily was jarred awake by Jack pounding on the door and yelling, "Time to get up little missy!"

Groggy and in pain, Lily hauled herself out of bed, wishing he could stop calling her that, yet not entirely sure she wanted him to be calling her by name either.

She stepped out of the cabin, shielding her eyes from the harsh morning sunlight. The bright rays were reflecting off the ocean waters and already men were at work, adjusting the sails, tugging on numerous ropes, hammering way at some part of the ship or another.

"Miss Lily!" Jack called to her from his place at the helm. "Welcome to the Black Pearl. Please, join me."

Aware of the looks she was getting from the men, she quickly scampered up the steps to stand near Jack, though that didn't make her feel much more comfortable.

"Gents, this is the gal you were told about," he announced to the crew, which had momentarily stopped working to stare at her. Lily felt herself blushing uncomfortably. "Our very own Miss Lily who happens to be searching for her brother in Tortuga. Now since we have a bit of a flower on board, please be as gentlemanly as possible." But Jack was grinning and the crew chuckled unpleasantly. They were the farthest thing from being gentlemanly, and it was more than obvious. "All right, back to work you slime!"

The crew obeyed and Jack turned to Lily. "Gibbs'll give you something to eat and then you're to follow him and do as he says, savvy lass?"

Lily glanced over Jack's shoulder to see where Gibbs stood, eyeing her and eating a chunk of slightly unpleasant-looking bread. Knowing she had no other choice, Lily nodded. Jack gave her a quick nod of approval.

"Good."

Lily spent the next two days following after Gibbs, doing everything he told her and soon realizing he wasn't as frightening as he made out to be. He reassured her that he and Jack would allow no harm to come to her and she wasn't the first woman to sail with them. She asked about the woman named Elizabeth and simply earned a chuckle and a "That's a long story," from him. She began to feel more comfortable as long as she remained near Gibbs and Jack; she still didn't trust anyone else…except Cotton's parrot…and perhaps Cotton as well since he didn't pay her much mind. The others, when they weren't doing something that required their full attention, stared at her, their entire imagination floating in their eyes.

On the third day a ship was spotted on the horizon and the crew unanimously decided to go after her and double their catch before arriving at Tortuga. Staring at the ship through his telescope, Jack surmised that they could probably catch it before sundown as long as the wind kept up.

"Jack!" Lily called, racing up the steps to the helm. "You're not seriously going to attack that ship are you?"

He stared at her for a moment before leaning forward and raising up his eyebrows. "_Pirate._"

Lily sighed, a little deflated. Honestly, how ignorant was she?

"But, you don't expect _me_ to help, do you?"

"'Course not love. I expect you to remain here, on this ship, happy as a sea turtle while we do what it is we do, ey?"

Lily pursed her lips. "Sea turtles must not be very happy then."

"Of course they're not—always being eaten." He glanced at her. "Delicious though."

She opened her mouth to reply and then stopped, trying to figure out if she had just been insulted, complimented, or if Jack really was commenting on the taste of sea turtle meat.

"Brace yourselves up lads!" Jack yelled. "We're getting close!"

It wasn't long before they were alongside the ship and yells and gunshots were being exchanged. The ship was a little smaller than the merchant ship from before and the small crew surrendered fairly quickly. Lily was near the stairs, quietly watching and gasped in fright when one of Jack's crewmembers was shot by someone hidden behind a crate, and fell overboard, dead. The dissenter was caught moments later, Jack chastising his group.

"Maybe if you worthless lugs moved faster, this sort of thing wouldn't happen."

Suddenly Lily felt a hand clamp over her mouth and a strong arm around her waist, pulling her backward and out of sight. Her struggles got her nowhere even as her fear grew. This was not normal—someone was doing something they weren't supposed to, but without any help it wasn't going to matter.

"I don't like it when the captain refuses to share," said a pathetic sort of voice in her ear. "It's high time I had my fun. Then I'll kill ya and dump ya overboard. Captain won't ever even know what happened to ya."

Lily's heart pounded in her chest. _Someone…someone…!_

"Actually," said Jack's voice at the same time as a pistol cocked, "I would."

The man turned, still holding Lily, to see Jack standing here, his gun to the man's forehead.

"Let her go."

He did so and Lily flattened herself to the wall beside Jack. He started walking, forcing the man to walk backward, his hands held up and eyes trained on Jack. There was no possible way for him to talk his way out, only the hope that Jack needed every man to crew the Black Pearl would save him.

However, the moment they were in full view of the rest of the men, Lily half hiding behind the stairs, Jack pulled the trigger and shot the man in the head, earning a startled scream from Lily.

"The next time one of you touches this woman here, you'll end up same as him," he announced to the surprised group. "She is one of the crew and is to be treated as such." He holstered the revolver and marched back out. "Now get back to moving that load. I haven't got all day!"

Lily sunk down behind the stairs and covered her face with her hands. There was never a time when she missed her brother more.

"Gents!" Jack was yelling. "Remember this as the day you were boarded by Captain Jack Sparrow!"

--------------------

That night, long after everyone had gone to sleep, Lily snuck out of the cabin to stand at the rail at the side of the ship, leaning on it gently as she looked out over the black ocean. At length she took off her hat, something she hadn't yet done when not in the safety of the cabin. Free of the hat's confines, her creamy chocolate locks fell down around her shoulders, unkempt and distressed. She wished she had a comb to run through her hair at least. Closing her eyes, she sighed slowly, letting the salty breeze play over her features.

"Lovely head of hair you've got," she heard Jack say, at the same time feeling his fingers twisting into it. "Pity we never get to see it."

She spun to face him as he came up at her left.

"How's your arm?"

The swift change in subject matter caught her off guard.

"Um," she started, trying to recover from her surprise. "Well. Thank you."

Jack was now leaning against the wood rail as well. Blinking, Lily did the same, returning to her former posture and overlapping one hand on the other. For a long time neither of them said anything and gazed instead at the stars and the moon and tried to find the thin line separating air from water.

"I know you're not a maid, love," Jack finally said, turning to her.

"Oh?" said Lily, refusing to look at him. "And how exactly are you to know something like that?"

With a quick motion Jack had taken up one of her hands in his.

"These are still much too soft." He ran his thumb over her fingertips and then the palm of her hand, grinning.

She quickly pulled her hand away but didn't say anything. It would be pointless to argue, he was much too astute and she really did not want him asking too many questions—her last name especially. She always was a horrible liar.

"So," Jack went on, "what makes this brother of yours so bloody special that a lady like you is willing to go all over the ocean in a pirate ship to find him, especially if said fellow is a pirate himself, being at Tortuga and all."

There was a moment when Lily said nothing until she felt confident enough and was able to look Jack in the face.

"Aside from the simple fact that he is my _brother_, which seems to be too much of an inadequate reason for you, he has helped me through many hard times and I think now is when I should return the favor."

"Hard times?" Jack questioned, narrowing his eyes at her in curiosity. Lily let a shadow of a smile slip.

"When I was sixteen, I had already played far too much with my brother; sword fighting, hunting, other sports meant for men. So my parents feared I wasn't becoming a proper lady. Their," she sighed, "_solution_ to the problem was to arrange my engagement to a man more than twice my age and very strict in the ways in which women should behave. On the day of his arrival I fled into the woods beyond our home. They tried to find me, but I kept hiding, living on berries and the water in the streams for three days." Jack raised an eyebrow, pleasantly impressed. "Finally I saw my brother, riding alone, looking for me. I allowed him to discover me and he said he wouldn't let the wedding occur if I was so discontented with it. I don't think he ever fully approved either. The man was so far beyond anything I could ever even grow to love.

"When we returned home, my brother went straight to our parents and told them to put a stop to the engagement. They argued for a long time. Finally it was his announcement that if they continued their plan, he would cut himself off from them entirely and there would be no one to carry on their name and much of a scandal to boot. So they cancelled the engagement and three years later he entered the Royal Navy and I haven't seen him since, just letters."

"Ah," Jack cooed, "so he's a sailor gone pirate, is that it, ey?"

Lily froze. She had been so engrossed with telling her story she had entirely forgotten who she was talking to. But she had the advantage in Jack's thinking her brother was just a sailor.

"Yes—well, no. At least I hope not. My brother is a fine man. I'd hate for anything bad to happen to him."

"Don't like pirates much do you?"

Lily couldn't help but smile. "You're my first."

Jack turned to lean back, resting his elbows on the dark wood. "Your first, ey?" he said, grinning. "Well then I guess that makes me someone special."

She was sure he was playing with her words again, but decided it would be best for her not to ask. Things were quiet again. The ocean waves folded in on themselves or absentmindedly ran into the ship.

"How did you know what that man was planning to do with me?" she asked, turning to him again as the thought popped into her head.

"I thought he made that quite clear himself."

She sighed in annoyance. "You know what I mean."

"Well I knew you were busy looking horrified by what we were doing, and I know who all my crew is, and I only trust about five of 'em. So when I didn't see Wicks doing what he was supposed to be doing and I spotted the vacant area you had most recently been filling, I came back over, heard him talking to you, and bang, there you have it."

Lily nodded slowly.

"Now if you'll excuse me," he said, pushing himself up, "I'm off to have another wonderful night in that hammock, so enjoy my bed, and I bid you a good night."

He went off and she stood there a little longer before laughing quietly to herself and going to bed as well.

-------------------

The following evening it began to rain. The sea remained calm and the wind died into the merest whisper. Jack had decided to cut the men a break and allowed them to go ahead below and play cards, gamble, and drink the rest of the day away while it rained. They knew it wouldn't last much past the next morning and they would probably reach Tortuga the next evening.

Lily had just finished flipping her hair out of the hat and shaking a few raindrops from her clothes when the door swung open with a bang, causing her to jump in fright. She spun around to see Jack come in, no quite soaked through, but with water spilling from his hat and his clothes visibly damp.

"What are you doing in here?" Lily cried before she could stop herself, knowing the question was utterly idiotic. Jack stared at her and then closed the door to the gray wet outside.

"If I recall, this _is_ my ship, and hence, that _is_ my bed."

Lily's embarrassment gave way to shock. "You can't mean you're going to sleep here do you?"

"I don't expect to sleep in that bloody hammock in the rain."

"But, but—where will _I_ sleep?"

Jack raised his eyebrows. "The bed's just big enough for two, love. Looks like you're gonna have to make due for one night."

Lily was rooted to her spot in the floor, mouth agape at the very idea of having to share a bed with a pirate captain. It didn't help that Jack was pulling off his belt and weapons and hanging them on a peg in the wall. Then he noticed Lily staring at him.

"Would you mind Lily dear? I know it's an impressive thing to see, but if watching a pirate change his clothes is going to addle your little head, you might want to look away."

Coming to her senses, Lily climbed onto the bed and stared out the window, gathering her knees to her chest and trying her best not to think about what was behind her. She could feel the color rising to her cheeks. Perhaps she should omit this part of the story when she found James. For the sister of Commodore Norrington to be in the same bed as Captain Jack Sparrow—

Her eyes widened and for a moment her heart seemed to stop. _Captain Jack Sparrow._ A hand went up to her mouth. _My God, it can't be. Jack Sparrow—that's the pirate James was chasing!_

She felt the springs creak as Jack sat down and took off his boots.

_This cannot be possible. Of all the luck for me to have…_

They creaked again as he laid back, hands folded behind his head.

"I don't bite, love," he finally said, jarring Lily from her thoughts.

"I'm perfectly all right, thank you," she said in a slightly shaking voice.

Another long silence passed.

"You can't sleep like that you know," he informed her.

"I may surprise you," she said, this time in a much firmer tone as she regained some of her resolve.

"Somehow I don't think something you'd do to surprise me would surprise me…surprisingly."

_Odd man indeed,_ she thought.

"You might as well lie down and get it over with love. Just think of it as jumping into a pool of cool water; easier to go in all at once than to drag it all out."

"What on earth makes you think that I'll actually be able to sleep next to a pirate?"

She looked over her shoulder at him. Jack noticed her and propped himself up on one elbow. "First," he said, holding up one finger, "you know pure and simple that I won't do you any harm. Second," another finger went up, "I'm sure you're jus as tired as everyone else." With that he flopped back onto the mattress, hands folded over his stomach and eyes closed.

The darkening grayness outside blurred in her eyes as they went out of focus amidst her thought. Of all things to happen, she had to wind up in this exact predicament. She glanced back at Jack, his chest slowly rising and falling as he lay there. Sighing in discomfort and embarrassment, she flopped down on her side of the small bed, slightly curled up into herself with her back facing him. She heard Jack chuckle.

"That's more like it," he said.

"Good _night_ Captain Sparrow," she said, her stern tone indicating the end of any further conversation. Jack said nothing else, but Lily knew he was grinning behind her.

--------------------

Hours later Jack stirred slightly. He began to stretch out when his foot came into contact with something. Momentarily confused, he cracked open an eye.

_Ah yes,_ he recalled. Little Miss Lily was in his way. She was lying on her side, face near his though one of his hands was settled on the pillow between them. Her mouth was just barely open, warm breath grazing his hand from between those pretty parted lips. A smirk crept over Jack's face. He seemed to have a knack for acquiring tempestuous women.

He reached up to touch her chin with his thumb and forefinger.

"You're lucky you're on my ship, love," he said quietly, the same grin still on his face. "If this were any other ship and I any other captain, one of us would be a lot happier at the present."

Deciding there was no harm in it, he continued to explore the wonderful softness of Lily's face.

_Pity we'll be at Tortuga tomorrow. I should have liked to have you on board a little while longer—might have persuaded you to become a permanent member of my crew._

The thought made Jack smile even wider.

When Lily finally began to move, he jerked his hand away to avoid waking her up—and having to deal with whatever she might say or do in the case that she realized what he had been doing. However, to his utter delight, she shifted closer so that her forehead was nearly against his chest. He began to wish it had rained more during this trip. As he fell back asleep, he also began to wonder; what would Lily do if she got to Tortuga…and _couldn't_ find her brother?

What indeed?

---------------------

When Lily awoke, it was to an absence of warmth she'd felt all night. Then she remembered. _Jack._ She had been sleeping beside Jack Sparrow all night. Now he was gone—no doubt awake and at the helm already. Sighing and still feeling tired, she got up, made herself as presentable as possible, and went outside.

"Mornin' Lily darlin'!" Jack cried from the exact place Lily expected him to be.

She nodded and waved him off, still not exactly accepting of the fact that she had just spend the night next to him. Jack only grinned and spun the wheel a few degrees. After grabbing a bite to eat, Lily began to work, untying a rope from its place. However, she was only halfway finished when Jack called to her.

"Lily m'dear! Come up here and give me a bit of company will you?"

Half annoyed and half perplexed as to what his motives could be, she tied the rope off again and headed up to stand beside him. She stared out at the sea and waited for him to say what he wanted.

"I've got a question for you, love," he said. Lily tilted her head back toward her shoulder and stared at him out of the corners of her eyes. "Are you absolutely, one-hundred percent, positively certain that your brother is in Tortuga?"

"Yes," she said and returned her eyes forward.

But Jack knew better. She had answered much too quickly to be certain. Lily knew it too. She could just _feel_ him behind her, grinning triumphantly.

"Now Lily," he said in a way that let her know he'd caught her, "I seem to recall something about a stone tablet somewhere that says thou should not lie…or shan't…or shouldn't…either way darlin', it's not very polite."

Lily didn't say anything. She hadn't wanted to think about that prospect. It was foolish not to, she knew, but she had no idea what she would do if that were the case. Would she try to return to Port Royal and then back to England? But what about James? Where would he be? What would he be doing?

"I don't know what I'll do if he's not there," she finally confessed. She turned to look at him and was surprised to see he actually looked fairly serious.

"And if you do find him and he is a pirate?"

"Then I must convince him to return with me and return to the man he was."

"What if he says no to your little request? What if," Jack let go of the wheel and began to walk around the front of it toward Lily, "he's enjoying himself so much, he refuses to return with you and you find yourself stuck on Tortuga with no boat and no brother. Or," he was now standing right in front of her, "he does agree to return with you, but that still leave you without a ship. _Or_," he took a few steps forward and leaned in so his face was just inches from hers; Lily didn't move, "you get to Tortuga, your wonderful brother is nowhere to be found, leaving you all by yourself, with no way home. What then, ey?"

He was looking at her with the tiniest hint of a smirk on his face—expectantly almost. Lily stared back for a moment and then raised an eyebrow. He wasn't suggesting…he couldn't be implying… Certainly not offering her the use of his ship, was he?

"Captain Sparrow," she began.

"Lily my dear," he jumped in, backing up a little, "you'd make a fine edition to my crew. You work hard, you're a very lovely girl—"

"Captain Sparrow!"

"And if you wanted, you wouldn't even have to work at all—"

"_Captain Sparrow!_"

"And perhaps if your brother really has turned pirate, he could come aboard as well—"

Lily stormed off. She might have accepted his help in the case of transportation, but she certainly had no intentions to remain aboard permanently—with _him_!

"Oh where are you going," Jack called, sounding disappointed. "Come here, don't get your dress all ruffled."

Lily spun around. "Captain Sparrow! If you even have the smallest thought in your head concerning me and this ship, I suggest you remove it this instant! There is no possible way I would remain here with you! What makes you honestly believe I would ever consider such a proposal?"

"Oh I don't know," Jack said in a way that indicated otherwise. "You mentioned last night how I thought it possible you could sleep beside a pirate," he began, coming down the steps to her, "but let me tell you something love," he stopped in front of her and put a hand to her shoulder, tilting his head a little, "you slept quite well last night."

Flustered, Lily pursed her lips, her hands curling into fists at her sides. She couldn't deny sleeping well; it would only make her look more pointlessly resistant. However, she was not going to admit feeling more warm and comfortable last night than she had on all previous nights out at sea.

Her lack of movement away from him prompted Jack to do more.

"In fact, I feel I should inform you that you slept much closer to a pirate than you would have liked," he smirked and put a few fingers just under her jaw line to tilt her head up so she would look at him. "Maybe I don't make you feel as uncomfortable as you like to claim I do."

He had her now, staring at his dark brown eyes, allowing him to touch her out in the open on the deck. Perhaps he really was right—she wasn't as uncomfortable with him as she put on. She was thinking again, he could tell. Perhaps this was the perfect chance; catch her before she thought too much about it.

What was he doing? Was he going to _kiss_ her? Did she want him to? Just moments ago she'd been rallying against him for suggesting she stay on his ship if she was unable to find her brother. But that was different—this would just be one kiss. Was she actually considering doing this? It wasn't as though he was forcing her. He was moving slowly, closing the gap, giving her the chance to escape if she wanted. _The scoundrel_. He knew a part of her wanted him to…

Jack smiled inwardly. _That's it love, stay right there…_

"Ah, another fine, glorious morning!" cried Gibbs as he climbed up to the deck.

His abrupt announcement broke Lily from Jack's enticement and she slipped away, moving to the rope she had begun with and working furiously to untie it. Jack wobbled where he was, missing her and his hands turning into claws of frustration. He stared at her back for a moment before throwing an irritated glare at Gibbs, who caught the look and was momentarily confused until he spotted Lily and the pink color of embarrassment on her cheeks. Realizing his mistake, he gave Jack a "Sorry about that," expression and hurried off to work as the other crewmembers began to emerge. Still growling a little to himself, Jack swept over to Lily.

"Now Lily darlin'," he started, hoping he could get back to where he'd just been.

"I can't believe myself," she muttered, freeing the rope and turning around to throw it violently out of the way. Jack was beginning to think perhaps he should let her alone for a while, lest his efforts earn him yet another slap in the face. Lily turned on him. "I don't know why I put up with you."

"Because I've saved you from a rather nasty fate twice and I've been nothing but a gentleman to you…or as much as possible…until recently of course," he said quickly, hoping the little apology would lead him back into her good graces. Then he began to wonder—when was the last time he'd worked this hard for a woman? He really needed to get to Tortuga. Maybe by now Driselle had forgiven him over Scarlet…oh what a mess.

"And," he suddenly added, "I'm helping you find your dear brother."

She looked at the floor and began crinkling handfuls of her tired maid's dress.

"I know. I know Jack. I'm sorry. Just…please," she looked up at him, "don't do that again."

She went off to help with the sails and this time Jack didn't go after her. He did, however, watch her for a little longer before grinning widely and returning to the helm. He supposed she meant for him to take her seriously, but he was far from discouraged; it had been the first time she'd called him Jack.


	3. Chapter 3

"There it is!" Jack yelled to the crew. "Wondrous Tortuga! Make ready gents, we'll be a'dock shortly!"

As Lily went to the rail to look out at the famed Tortuga, Jack handed the wheel to someone else and came down.

"Mr. Gibbs!" he called. Gibbs went over to him. "Find a spare set of clothes we can dress our little flower in," Lily turned to look at him, "after all, this isn't exactly the safest place for a maid of a governor's house to be in."

Gibbs nodded. "Aye Jack."

He went off to find something she might fit into. Jack noticed Lily looking at him.

"You may not come off as a man, but you'll be less likely to end up in another sticky situation while you look for your brother. Savvy?"

She nodded and went back to gazing at the buzzing town. In another moment she felt Jack come up beside her.

"I won't need your help after this Jack," she said. "I'm quite capable of finding my brother on my own."

"On the contrary," he said, "I think you do love. If this if your first time to Tortuga, and I know it is, then you're going to need plenty of help looking for this brother of yours. Can't have you wandering all over asking for directions now can we?"

He was grinning again and she knew it. She also knew her brother would detest the idea of her gallivanting around Tortuga with a pirate he had been trying to arrest, even if it was to find him. Something told her swords would be drawn. There was, however, the slight chance that if James had turned pirate himself, there might be no conflict at all. She doubted that, but still, how much choice did she have?

"Here you are miss," said Gibbs from behind her. She turned and he handed her a pile of old clothes and a belt. "If it doesn't fit well, we'll just add a few more notches to the belt until it does," he informed her.

Moments later, changed, docked, and feet on solid land again, Lily found herself in the unlikeliest of all places for a woman of her standing; in pirate clothing, walking into the most raucous and uncouth places she'd ever seen, accompanied by a pirate captain and some of his crew, looking for a pirate who had until recently been a commodore in the British Royal Navy.

She couldn't even begin to imagine the exact point her life had taken such a ridiculous turn.

_Our parents would most certainly disinherit both of us now, no question._

All around, men were drinking, fighting, groping promiscuous women, and in general being as immoral as one could be. Wary though she was, Lily tried to look as though this was nothing new, but all the same she stayed near Jack. They were headed for a tavern, Jack explaining he and Gibbs went there often to recruit new crewmembers and were going to do so presently, as several men were going to remain ashore and others they simply wanted to be rid of. A part of Lily hoped the tavern sold wine—she felt like a drink; preferably something she knew she would be able to stomach.

Things in the barroom were more frenzied than outside, if that were even possible. Jack and Gibbs ordered their drinks before setting up a table to being recruiting, Lily slipping off momentarily to buy herself something to drink as well. She ignored Jack's grin when he saw a mug to her lips as she returned.

"When will we look for James?" she asked over the noise of men shouting and objects breaking.

"Oh so the elusive brother does have a name!" Jack exclaimed in a dramatic way. Lily ignored that too, knowing that Jack's knowledge of her brother's first name wouldn't matter. Instead she took a drink, surprised at just how good the wine was. She surmised it had probably been stolen from somewhere.

"Give it a chance first love," Jack told her. "If your brother really has gone pirate, maybe he's in need of someone to sail with, ey?"

Lily nodded a little. As usual, Jack made sense, which in itself never seemed to make sense.

So far they had only recruited two men, and as they waited, Lily occasionally wandered off to look around for herself, but she always returned just to be safe.

"It's goin' slow today Jack," Gibbs said at length. "Guess no one's feelin' much like headin' out to sea."

"We'll try another spot in a bit," Jack said as he played with his compass, "just give it a little longer yet."

"Back much sooner than I'd hoped, already looking for new pieces of filth to crew that ragged ship I see."

_I know that voice!_ Lily looked over the edge of her mug.

"James!"

She jumped up and ran over to him before the astonished Gibbs could say anything. He looked horrible, his uniform ragged and covered in dirt and who knew what else, his hair snarled and unkempt, and his once clean and shaven face dirty and covered in stubble.

"What the—?" he started as she grabbed onto his jacket, momentarily forgetting his planned tirade against Gibbs and eventually Jack.

"James, it's me!" she cried, almost pulling off her hat.

"_Lily?_"

"Wait a moment," spouted Jack, unable to keep quiet, "your name is Lily _Norrington_?"

"You know this useless wretch?" Norrington asked his sister, pointing at Jack and beginning to look both horrified and enraged.

This was it, the moment of truth. She could deny she knew Jack, make up some excuse, or just tell the truth and hope for the best. Perhaps playing innocent could work; pretend she had forgotten all about the specifics of his last letter.

"He's the reason I was able to find you, James," she said, hoping this information would help soften the blow. "He saved my life twice and offered to help me find you."

"Only because you forgot to mention your last name is all," she heard Jack mutter. But he was over there with a smug grin on his face, staring at Norrington, obviously rubbing it in that he had assisted Lily in such a way. Except that it was not helping in the least.

"Do you mean to tell me," Norrington said in forced even tones, "that after I've lost my commission chasing this brigand, landed myself here, my sister arrives on _his_ ship and using _his_ help to find me?"

"That seems about right mate," Jack said before Lily could say anything.

In a flash Norrington had his sword out and was aiming for Jack, whose reflexes had him matched with Norrington. The two were at it and nothing Lily could say would stop them. Their blades clanged throughout the bar with her shouting after them. Jack seemed to be having a grand time facing off with the ex-commodore, whereas Norrington was hell-bent on striking the pirate captain down.

Finally she gave up, and with an irritated huff, went back to Gibbs, who was watching with interest, and pulled his sword from his belt. As he stood there in surprise and with an even more heightened interest, Lily rushed back to James and Jack, who were dueling with such ferocity she had to bide her time in search of just the right spot to parry both of them and take James head on if necessary.

_There!_

She stuck out her sword, stopping both blades and the knocking Jack's back and beginning her swordfight with her brother. _Never would I have thought I'd actually be fighting James over a pirate,_ she thought, as they automatically fell into their sibling duel from years ago in England.

"I can't believe you're on his side!" he yelled, his face red with anger.

"I'm not!" she cried. "I just want you two to stop so we can talk!"

"We can talk after he's dead!"

They were slowly backing up to where the fight had started when there was an abrupt crash and a shower of glass rained down around Norrington. After standing there momentarily, he fell over and Lily saw Gibbs, broken bottle in hand.

"Sorry Lily," he said, "but I don't think he woulda listened to you, drunk as he is."

Sad, tired, but thankful, she nodded. "My thanks Mr. Gibbs."

----------------------

"Don't worry about it Lily darlin'," Jack said, his boots up on the quiet (or as much as possible) table they'd gotten in the back. "Give him a few hours and he'll be back to his normal self, though I'd say there isn't much of a difference."

"Aye," said Gibbs. "He'll likely be wantin' to kill Jack either way, drunk or sober."

Lily sighed, her eyes fixed on the table as she leaned her head in her hands. _Poor James_, she thought and looked over her shoulder at him where he lay unconscious on the floor.

"Perhaps it's best that I be alone with him when he wakes up," she said, turning back to them.

"Mm, perhaps Miss Lily is right on that one Jack," said Gibbs, looking to Jack in hopes that he would agree.

Jack snapped his compass shut. "If that's what our little missy wants I suppose we should respect her wishes then. Come on Mr. Gibbs," he stood, "we've still got work to do." He looked at Lily. "You know where we've docked. Bring him if he comes to his senses, but I'll have you know I'm not going to put up with the former commodore trying to kill me every chance he gets, savvy?"

Lily nodded and then saw Jack smile.

"Cheer up love. He still may come around and join us, ey?"

He and Gibbs left, and though Jack's sentiments didn't cheer her up at all, she did hope James would at least agree to accept transportation from the Pearl.

When Norrington did wake up and then wake up enough to remember what had just happened, it took Lily some time to calm him down and convince him to sit down and listen to her instead of aiming to kill Jack. She told him the entire story, save the parts about Jack sleeping in the same bed as her and then almost kissing her the morning after. The simple fact that Lily had done so much to see him and that Jack had served some purpose in his life seemed to relax Norrington enough to take his hand from his sword handle and talk to her rationally. He asked how she had known where to find him and just what she planned to do now that she had.

"You must return with me to Port Royal of course," she told him after explaining the stories of the sailors.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry Lily, I can't do that. Not yet anyway."

"But why not?"

"I've lost everything chasing Jack Sparrow. I can't show my face in Port Royal again until I've got something to show for it. Until then I'll join his crew; stick with him until something comes up."

Lily bit her lower lip. "James, you can't mean to kill him. I know he's a pirate, but he's kept me safe and offered to help even when I said no."

"Undoubtedly looking for some profit for himself at some point," he muttered. "And why is everyone always defending him?"

Lily was getting more uncomfortable by the moment. Why was she defending Jack? Shouldn't she be on her brother's side no matter what? Still, she couldn't deny that for all his oddities and being a pirate, Jack was a good man.

"James, please," was all she could say.

"Lily, I know you've come a long way to see me and offer your assistance," he said with a sympathetic look and putting his hand on hers, "but I've no right to go back now. We'll both just have to wait." He sat back in his chair. "I assume Mr. Sparrow will be expecting you to return to his ship?"

"He did offer us both a place as long as we're members of his crew—"

"I still can't believe he made you work with those men," Norrington growled.

"He wouldn't let any harm come to me," she told him softly. This time it was her turn to put her hand on his.

"All right then," Norrington said, still looking very unhappy about all this, "let's go." He paused. "There's no way you'll be going back to Port Royal or England without me, is there?"

She smirked. "No."

---------------------

"Commodore!" Jack called pleasantly as the two approached his ship.

"Not anymore you imbecile," Norrington said, an edge to his voice.

"James then!" said Jack with a wave of his hand. Lily closed her eyes, waiting for her brother to attack Jack again, the idiot.

"You will call me Norrington if you call me anything," he grated.

"Whatever you say mate," said Jack. "So, you two kids coming aboard my ship then?"

"Yes."

"Good! Go on ahead and enjoy yourselves. Oh, and Lily darlin'," they paused to look back at him, "you can sleep in the same spot as before, ey?"

Jack walked off, Lily catching Jack muttering something like, "…Driselle and Scarlet…bloody women…lucky for me…" as she quickly turned back around, hurrying to climb aboard the Pearl in order to hide her burning face from her brother, who remained staring after Jack, suspicion written all over his features.


	4. Chapter 4

When they were finally back at sea, it wasn't until several days later that Lily realized just how exhausted she was. Despite Norrington's protests, she had virtually thrown herself into working on the Pearl. Norrington wouldn't listen to her about returning and Jack was of no help whatsoever. In fact, he was another reason she was working so hard. While her brother told her she had no need to be working on the ship like a pirate herself, Jack continuously agreed. However, his motivations were much different from Norrington's, and though he managed to be subtle enough for Norrington not to catch his meaning, Lily could tell by that little smirk of his that he had other thoughts.

She gave them both the satisfaction of seeing her turn in early one night, stopping her work and heading into the cabin and Jack's bed once more, something she had grown accustomed to by now. It definitely smelled like Jack, though that wasn't entirely as unpleasant as she had first expected. A strange mix of dirt, sea salt, rum, and strange spices. Odd and comforting at the same time. However, she suspected Jack of ending up in bed with her; that morning she was vaguely aware of him in the room, mumbling to himself and the door clicking shut. Lily could only imagine what he was talking about, but preferred not to. She was torn on whether or not to ask him if he had slept there, eventually deciding against it in the case that it encouraged him.

"Sleep well love?" he asked once she emerged. One look at his grinning face told her all she needed to know and she ignored him the rest of the day. The looks he kept throwing her way was earning him notice from Norrington, who was already quite uncomfortable with the idea of Lily sleeping in Jack's quarters—especially on nights he was unable to account for Jack.

"You know love," Jack started as Lily went up to the bridge in order to get a better view of the ship as she took a breath, "it wouldn't hurt if you'd just admit it."

"And what might that be, Captain Sparrow?" she asked, clasping her hands behind her back and not doing him the pleasure of looking at him.

"That you enjoy my…company."

She couldn't help but glance back to check his expression. Half grin on his face of course.

"I enjoy nothing of the sort," she said, turning back around.

"Oh come off it already little Miss Norrington," he said, leaning heavily upon his words. "If you didn't, you'd be long gone by now—brother or no brother."

Lily left. She couldn't bear to stand there and listen to him prattle on about her fancying him—even if he was half right.

"You'll admit it to me someday!" he called after her.

"Leave me alone Jack!" she called back.

Jack laughed quietly to himself and gave the wheel a half turn. Back to Jack again, was he?

------------------

That night Lily decided she'd had enough of the rat-eaten clothes Gibbs had dug up for her. She was going back to the maid's dress since she's managed to wash it somewhat and it was just as easy to work in as it didn't require her to pick it up every time she needed to rush somewhere. She had considered taking the next day off but decided against it as she didn't feel like giving either her brother or Jack the satisfaction of seeing her go back to being more of a lady.

She had just stripped out of her clothes and was about to slip on the bodice when the door opened and Jack stepped in. Gasping in surprise, Lily snatched the bodice to her front and pressed back against the shelf of random books and knickknacks. Jack looked up at her and seemed unfazed by the state she was in. Then it seemed to dawn upon him and his eyebrows went up.

"Oh. Sorry."

He shut the door behind him, remaining in the room. Lily cleared her throat loudly. Jack stared at her.

"Did you want something Lily dear?" he asked. Lily gaped at him. Did he not notice she was utterly naked behind this piece of cloth?

"Jack, would you please leave?"

"And why would I do that?" he asked, sounding as though it were the most nonsensical question in the world.

"Because," Lily said slowly, reining her patience, "I am in the middle of dressing."

"All the more reason for me to stay, love. Please, continue."

She was positively gawking at him now.

"No, I will not continue!"

"Well then darlin', I guess you won't be getting dressed, ey?" With that, he went about his business, leaving her to stare in disbelief.

"What are you doing in here anyway?" she finally asked, knowing this time he could catch her meaning.

"Your bloody brother took the hammock, so that means you get to stick it out with me again."

"Don't lie to me—I know you were in here last night sleeping."

He stopped what he was doing and turned his attention on her. "All right then. I was in here last night. I did sleep in the bed I am merely _lending_ to you while you still happened to be in it," he had begun walking toward her, "and I admit that I enjoyed doing so and I am sure that one some level, in your little head, you do as well." Lily pressed back against the shelf more, but there was nowhere to go, and he was only a foot or so away now. "As for lying about Norrington in the hammock, I am doing no such thing. I'd suggest you take a look for yourself, but seeing as you're not decent enough for the deck of my ship—something I believe I disagree with—you can forget all that," he stopped inches away, his face looking down into hers, "and just stay here with me."

"You planned this didn't you?" She could just see it behind those deep brown eyes of his. "You could easily tell him to move and he would do it."

He seemed to ponder her question for a bit. "I can't say I expected you to be half undressed—" he eyed her, "—or wholly dressed, but you're right, I did plan this a bit. I could tell him to get out, but he just seemed to be sleeping so well…"

She should have been repulsed. She should have been trying to escape. But instead she found herself frozen on the spot, mesmerized by that ever-knowing little smirk of his. One of his hands was sneaking up into her hair, the other settling behind her arm. Why was she letting him do this? He was the farthest thing from a gentleman—a rotten thief who only desired one thing from her. A damned pirate who had only saved her life twice. A rum-drinking dog who had done nothing but help her from the start—

"You're thinking too much love," he said, his face close enough for her to feel his warm breath on her lips.

"I can't help it," she managed to say, trying to suppress a shiver and failing to do so.

His grin grew wider. "You need to learn how to stop."

It didn't matter; she felt like telling him he was making it impossible anyway.

"You know something love?" he asked, his voice quiet, his lips just barely brushing over hers. _The bastard_. Was he enticing her? Daring her to make the first move? Somehow that wasn't surprising.

"I hear there are edible flowers in the world," he continued, "and I've been wondering for quite some time now; what does a lily taste like?"

Without giving her the chance to reply, he put his mouth over hers, his hand gripping her hair and body pressing close. He was the very epitome of lust and desire. When he broke free, Lily was left breathless, forgetful of her current state as Jack smiled to himself.

"Mm, strawberries," he said, and Lily began to vaguely wonder how that was possible. "I think I'd like to know," Jack continued, reaching up behind her to take down a bottle, "how rum tastes with strawberries."

He uncorked the bottle and took a long drink before kissing her again. Jack was a damn good kisser, and any hopes Lily had of not encouraging him utterly disappeared. The combination of skill he commanded and the taste of a rum-soaked kiss was intoxicating in itself. His tongue deftly explored hers as though it had any right to, the same way his hands had slowly been sneaking to the front and carefully pulling the bodice free to expose her to him completely.

"Mm," he muttered as he pulled away. "Very good." His eyes traveled to the ivory column of her throat. "How about rum and cream?"

He dipped his head and Lily forgot all thought and let go to the feel of his warm mouth on her skin and his hands pressed on her back and waist. _Pirate._

It wasn't much longer before she found herself exploring him as well, the two scars on his chest left by bullet wounds, the ugly, twisting scar on his left forearm, the "P" brand on his right, just under the sparrow, flying free in the setting sun. She forgot all about the flavor of wine and reveled in the taste of rum while Jack enjoyed his combination of rum, strawberries, and cream.


End file.
